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Chemists applaud Senate hearing on National Ambient Air Quality Standards

The American Chemistry Council (ACC) said on Wednesday that it welcomed the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee’s hearing about the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed revisions to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).

“We welcome today’s hearing on the impact and achievability of EPA’s proposal,” the council said in a press release. “We remain concerned about the agency’s plan to lower the ozone standards, which is unsupported by health science evidence, will not result in cleaner air and could stall manufacturing growth.”

The EPA’s planned revisions would lower the ozone standards from 75 parts per billion (ppb) to a range of between 65 and 70ppb. The changes have faced challenges from lawmakers, private businesses and industry groups due to their potential to adversely affect manufacturing.

“Today’s ozone standard is the most stringent ever and has not been fully implemented across the country,” the ACC said. “EPA should focus on helping states come into compliance, as the agency pledged to do when it issued final implementation rules this past March. We hope the administrator will use her discretion under the Clean Air Act to retain today’s standard.

The statement goes on to support bills currently before Congress that would require a more in-depth examination of the implementation issues presented by the proposed revisions.